Act 4: Herb Enhancement

Act 4:
Herb Enhancement

 

I WENT TO THE LIBRARY for the first time in a while. It had been difficult to make it there since I started taking classes, but I finally managed it—and I headed over at full speed because I had finally received permission to enter the Forbidden Depository.

The Depository was attached to the library, but the break room for the librarians separated it from the public area. Plus, a massive door kept it locked away.

The key for that door struck me as odd in that it looked regular to me, but apparently it wasn’t remotely mundane. I didn’t really understand how it worked, but it utilized some mysterious magical technology such that even if you possessed the key, the door only opened to those granted permission to enter. It resembled biometric authentication, really.

Also, you didn’t need to lock the door on your way out, as there was a kind of auto-lock system.

After I showed the librarian in the break room my permit, he opened the Depository door and guided me to the bookshelf I wanted to see. The library wasn’t that popular of a place to begin with, but the Forbidden Depository was even more desolate. The only ones in there were the librarian and myself.

“The bookshelves containing the books related to herbology and botany are here and here.”

I thanked the librarian, and he left, whereupon I immediately set about picking out books from the shelves.

As you might expect from a restricted library, the books were chained to their bookshelves, so they couldn’t be taken out of the room. The chain reached to about the length of the nearest desk and chair, so I grabbed a few notable books and sat there.

The books in the Depository looked older than the ones in the regular library, making me a bit nervous to so much as turn their pages. I took special care while poring through them for the information I wanted: more potent herbs than the ones used in high-grade HP potions.

I had read pretty much every book in the regular library related to medicinal plants. These described herbs used in all manner of potions up to high-grade, but said nothing of anything potentially stronger. Therefore, I hoped I might find such research in the Forbidden Depository. My guess was correct.

The Depository books did indeed have some books detailing herbs I had never heard of before. And that wasn’t all—these books were far more detailed about the herbs I was already acquainted with. I even found some potion recipes that inspired all sorts of new ideas—as for the effects of the original potions in these forbidden books? Well…it was probably better to pretend I hadn’t seen them.

I became entirely absorbed in reading, devouring one book after the other until I was exhausted.

I guess I should take a break? I thought to myself and looked up, where I found someone standing right next me.

“Eek!” I jumped in surprise.

In the dim light, I saw the faint outline of a white porcelain mask—no, wait—face. It was Grand Magus Yuri, and I had no idea how long he’d been standing there.

At least, I was pretty sure it was him. He wore a blank expression as he gazed down at the book, and since he was so beautiful, his face looked more like a mask.

“Grand Magus?” I called.

He turned his gaze to me and slowly smiled. “Are you looking for information on herbs?”

“Uh, yes… How long have you been here for?”

“Oh, a little while. I was waiting to see how long it would take you to notice me.”

“You should have just said something.”

“You looked so fascinated, I could hardly interrupt.”

It was true that I had been pretty invested in my new research, but was I so entranced that I hadn’t even noticed him breathing down my neck? I didn’t even notice him coming into the room.

It was quite a shock, all in all. I clutched my chest, my heart still pounding. Yuri turned the pages of my book.

“Is there someone you want to kill?”

“What?” I stared at him in confusion. That was the last thing I expected to hear. Why the heck would he say something like that?

“All of these plants are poisonous, correct?”

I looked down at the page he was pointing at. …Yup. He was right. Which meant this book contained nothing but poisonous plants.

H-hey, don’t they say that even poison can be beneficial depending on how you use it? I never intended to use them that way.

“Poison is only harmful in certain amounts—or with certain reactants,” I pointed out.

“Oh, that’s true.” He nodded, but I got the feeling he thought I was hiding something.

Really, I’m telling you the truth! Okay?

“So, what is it you’re looking for, then?”

“Uh, new medicinal plants. Ones I can use for variations on our current recovery potions.”

“So, herbs outside of normal usage?”

“More or less.”

Yuri seemed to find this intriguing, so I told him everything about my research and my hunt for more effective ingredients.

Yuri put his hand on his chin and sunk into thought with an, “I see.” After a moment, he asked, “You make potions by boiling herbs and water while imbuing them with magic, correct?”

“That’s correct.”

“Did you know that plants contain a miniscule amount of magic?”

“Huh? They do?” That was the first time I had ever heard such a thing.

According to Yuri, all living things possessed some quantity of magic. Not many people knew this, though. He himself had only confirmed it through his own research. Based on this knowledge, he gave me the following advice: I should focus on the amount of magic in the herbs I used in order to strengthen my potions.

The general theory said that herbs were made more potent by the application of magic during potion production. That was why Yuri thought my magic, with its extra glowy gold element, made my potions more efficient than everyone else’s.

“If the herbs were imbued with your magic even prior to brewing, I bet they would become even stronger,” Yuri said.

“I’m able to do that?”

“Who knows.”

I wanted to faceplant on the desk. That was the most essential question, but even the grand magus didn’t know the answer. I had a feeling he might be onto something, though, and the question now was how to go about accomplishing this.

“I apologize for my ignorance. I know a great deal when it comes to magic and spells, but herbs aren’t quite my forte.”

“That’s all right. I think you helped me a lot. Thank you.”

Thanks to his advice, I felt a glimmer of hope.

I was at a good stopping point, so I left the Forbidden Depository and headed back to the institute. Since I had never heard about herbs being magical before, it was highly likely the other researchers didn’t know anything about this, either. But surely they were more knowledgeable on the topic than the grand magus.

They say two heads are better than one, after all—and I’m going from two to a dozen.

I couldn’t help feeling a bit excited as Yuri and I went our separate ways.

 

***

 

When I got back to the institute, I started interrogating the other researchers about magical plants. Some of my peers knew about herbs with magical properties, however, no one had ever thought about imbuing their own magic into non-magical ones. They were taken by surprise when I mentioned it.

After all, we’d had no reason to think imbuing our own magic into the herbs prior to production would have anything to do with potion efficiency. Therefore, nobody had any ideas on how to actually go about it.

Well, if they don’t know, they don’t know. Just means I’ll have to run some experiments for myself.

“So, Jude, can you help me out?” I asked him.

“Getting right to it, huh? What do you need me to help you with?” Jude asked with a dry chuckle. He was such a nice person for agreeing so readily.

First, I wanted to see if we could make water with magic in it. By immersing cut flowers in dyed water, you can tint the hue of the petals. Therefore, I thought we might be able to do something similar with the herbs by immersing them in magically imbued water.

However, I didn’t know how to make such water, so I had to ask Jude with his proficiency in Water Magic. Unfortunately, he had no idea. He gave it a good try, and we experimented with all sorts of things—more magic, different channeling, that kind of stuff—but all we got was normal water.

“It’s a good theory, but wasn’t making magical water bound to fail for you, since you can’t use Water Magic in the first place?” Jude asked at the end of another failed experiment.

“I was going to figure that part out later,” I admitted, earning me an exasperated look.

Jude was right about my shortcomings, but I’d thought it’d be a good first step. However, I gave up on my Water Magic-induced magical water and instead tried to create it like I might when enchanting stone foci. If it worked with stones, then it might work with water, right?

Unfortunately, that idea was also an utter failure. I didn’t feel that same warm sensation I got when I enchanted something—rather, it felt, somehow, impossible.

“Still, that’s an inventive notion,” Jude said.

“You think so?”

“I’ve certainly never seen anyone attempt it before.”

“Well, it’s probably just that you don’t know a use for enchanted water. If it were necessary, I’m sure someone would figure it out.”

So I said, but the whole time I was thinking about the holy water found in games. If I remembered correctly, holy water was used to fend off undead monsters. In some games, when sprinkled, it kept monsters away for a time. How was holy water made again? Just by blessing it? That sounded familiar. But how did one go about blessing?

I picked up a beaker of distilled water and started nodding to myself.

“What’s up?” Jude had a somewhat uneasy tone.

“I was just thinking about how to bless this.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you guys not have holy water in this world?”

“Holy water? Hmm, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of that.”

If it didn’t exist, then maybe this was a moot point. I had the feeling I ought to double-check with the grand magus, since this seemed more related to magic than herbology.

I glanced outside and noticed the sun had already set and that it was steadily growing dark out. Some time had passed since Jude and I began our experiments.

I guess I’ll have to wait until tomorrow.

With that, we brought our experimenting to a close for the day.

 

“You want to know about blessings?” Yuri asked the next day during my class on magic.

I had asked him hoping it was merely a type of Holy Magic I had yet to learn, but Yuri hadn’t heard of it either.

In the hopes that holy water maybe went by a different name here, I began to explain my theory. When I mentioned the part about affecting undead monsters, I was pretty sure I didn’t imagine the sparkle in his eye.

From there, class took off in that direction, and I wound up telling him about the way magic functioned in the video games of my old world.

“Blessings also tend to be able to make a person stronger as well,” I said.

“Is that so? It sounds like these blessings had numerous effects indeed.”

“Magic didn’t actually exist, though—it was all made up.”

“But still, this is a truly curious concept. We have magic that can strengthen people, but nothing especially strong against undead monsters.”

“Does that mean you can’t defeat them with magic, then?”

“That’s not the case at all. We typically use Fire Magic and the like when facing their kind,” he said and then put his hand to his chin to ponder for a moment. Had he finally thought of something similar to blessings? “I wouldn’t say it’s ‘super effective’ against just the undead, but we do have magic that’s particularly good at annihilating monsters generally.”

“Really?”

“However, I’ve only heard of it. I don’t know many details.” His usual smile vanished, replaced with a grave look.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. If Yuri had only heard of this magic, it wasn’t a normal variety of elemental power. The only non-elemental magic I could think of was Practical Magic, but given that was so simple and ubiquitous, I doubted it was some kind of hidden power.

“What’s the magic called?” I asked.

“It doesn’t even have a name, I’m afraid. We only have records of the people capable of casting it.”

“You don’t mean…”

“It’s the magic used by the Saint.”

Ugh, I knew it. I had a feeling, you know? However, what was this about not having detailed records of the magic the Saint used? How were the Saints in later eras supposed to learn how to use that magic?

“You really have no records?” I asked.

“Indeed no. The only thing we know for sure is that it can defeat monsters at an extremely expedient rate. We know nothing about its effects, however.”

“Then how did past Saints learn how to use the magic?”

“I’m afraid we don’t know that either.”

Yeesh.

I got no information beyond that.

 

***

 

The next sunny morning, I was deep in thought as I watered my corner of the herb garden. I couldn’t stop thinking about the magic powers of the Saint that Yuri had mentioned the day before.

It seemed it would be difficult to make magical water at present, so I gave up for the time being. Maybe I dropped the ambition a bit too fast, but what I really needed to figure out how to do was imbue herbs with my magic, not make neat water.

Since plants contained water, I contemplated how changing the water used to feed them might change the nature of the water they held, but the question remained as to how…

I also couldn’t stop thinking about the magic Yuri had mentioned—the magic of the Saint that was so powerful against not just the undead but all monsters. I had heard something similar from an official before, too. He had said this magic wasn’t a blessing per se but a kind of purifying magic.

Purifying. Based on that word alone, I didn’t nurse much hope that this magic would have the effect I wanted. But it was the only thing I had to go on for now.

So, I decided to give it a shot. However, I didn’t know exactly how this magic worked.

Some books were written on the effects of these Saintly powers, but they contained only the briefest of descriptions that talked about how it could defeat monsters. Most of them detailed how it purified the miasma and thereby disrupted the miasma’s connection with the monsters. Surely there was more to it, but the books didn’t even give the Saint’s unique magic a proper name.

How in the world was I supposed to use it with such little information?

I didn’t know what reason these past writers might have had to go to such lengths to hide this information, but it didn’t change the fact that it gave me a headache having so much nothing to go on.

Where do I even start trying?

I focused on my magic and released it into my surroundings—just into my corner of the garden, though. I didn’t want to affect everyone else’s beds, after all.

I gazed steadily at the herbs before me but saw no difference in them. Just pouring my magic into them wasn’t going to cut it.

But maybe if I keep going, there’ll be some kind effect eventually? I thought. I waited for a little while, but still there was no change. I was going to run out of magical power if I kept going, so I had to leave off.

“Area Heal!” I cried.

A magic circle appeared on the ground and a white mist with gold sparkles rose up from it.

When the mist dissipated, I crouched down to examine my herbs again and found…that they somehow seemed in better shape.

I guess that means Heal works on plants as well. But that’s not the effect I want. I don’t want them to just be healthier. I just can’t figure it out.

I sighed. Still crouching, I waited for my MP to recover.

I would often recover by drinking a potion, but HP and MP also recovered naturally on their own. Apparently, the special training I had done also affected the recovery speed of my MP, and I didn’t doubt this to be true as I watched my Stats. My MP really did come back faster than it had before I started taking classes.

After my MP returned, I stood up and released my magic again. This time, I used every little bit of holy area-of-effect magic I had learned in class. I just kept hoping something might have the desired effect. However, my hopes were for naught yet again.

Refusing to be discouraged, I tried a few regular magic spells as well, but those didn’t work, either, even though I had really thought a spell for curing poison or paralysis like Purification might work.

Disappointed, I looked up at the sky to find the sun had already risen quite a bit. It was about time for me to head to the palace for class.

I wrapped up my impromptu experiments and headed back into the institute to get ready to leave.

 

***

 

When classes ended for the day, it was already dark outside.

As was the character of the institute, some people were still around, though it was the normal time for everyone to be finished with their work. That didn’t include me, though. I liked to return to my research after I got back from class. However, I was stuck, and because of that I was gazing thoughtfully at my experimental apparatuses when I heard someone call to me from behind.

“Still no change?”

I recognized that voice.

“That’s right,” I answered with a shrug, still staring at the apparatuses.

Johan moved to stand next to me. “It looked like you were casting magic in the garden this morning. Did that have something to do with this?”

“Oh, you saw me?” I chuckled.

“Hard not to when you were casting spells one after the other first thing in the morning.”

I was sure it would’ve been one thing if I had used Water or Earth Magic spells, since they would seem like they might have something to do with plants, but I must have really stood out throwing around all that Holy Magic in the middle of the garden.

I glanced out the corner of my eye to find Johan chuckling as well.

“Did you figure anything out?” he asked.

“Well, only that it seems magic can affect plants as well.”

“Oh?” Johan narrowed his eyes with interest.

I told him how my plants brightened when I cast Heal on them, despite not being able to check for sure since I couldn’t use Appraisal Magic.

Johan touched his chin and thought this over for a moment. “If Holy Magic can affect plants, then maybe other elements can as well.”

“What do you mean by ‘as well’?”

He then told me about how a number of Earth Magic spells affected plants and that they used it to grow valuable plants in the garden that would otherwise be difficult to cultivate. Johan was proficient in Earth Magic, so he had been doing just that with his magic ever since he started working at the research institute.

However, they only used Earth Magic and Water Magic on the institute’s herbs. After all, there weren’t many people skilled in Holy Magic, and those rare few were usually assigned to the Royal Magi Assembly or one of the Knightly Orders. As a result, I was the only person with an aptitude for Holy Magic at the institute and no one had ever noticed what kind of effects Holy Magic might have on plants.

After Johan told me all this, it was my turn to tell him what Grand Magus Yuri had said about how herbs had magic, and if I were able to get my magic into the herbs, I would most likely be able to make even stronger potions—so now I was looking for a way to do that.

Johan listened attentively until the end. “And that’s why you were casting magic at sunrise?”

“Yes, though I was unable to yield real results.”

“I see.”

“I guess the only other thing I haven’t tried yet is the Saint’s magic.”

“The Saint’s?” Johan looked at me questioningly.

Perhaps it came as a bit surprise, since I had been avoiding admitting I was the Saint and here I was bringing it up myself. “The grand magus mentioned it before…”

At that, I also told Johan about holy water and the Saint’s powers.

“I see. The Saint’s magic, though…”

“Do you know anything about it?”

“No. I know what they say about the Saint, but nothing more than anyone would know.”

“Ah.”

“If Grand Magus Drewes doesn’t either, then it’s unlikely anyone at the palace does.”

I hadn’t had much hope Johan would hold some secret knowledge, but the fact he didn’t either meant I really was at square negative one.

Things just aren’t going like I hoped.

“Though you know, it might not be the kind of thing that can be properly communicated.” Johan’s nonchalant words brought me out of my reverie.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“The kind of magic we use, with its universal, consistent effects, is something we share, yes?”

“I suppose so.”

“That’s why we can give it names and leave behind magic textbooks and the like to show anyone with the skill how to use it. However, perhaps the Saint’s magic is different.”

“Are you saying it might not have a name and so forth because its use and effect differs depending on who has it?”

“Something like that. What if it varies based on the caster? If it’s not a shared sort of magic, then there’s not much point in leaving instructions behind, right?”

“Hmm.”

Could that really be true? Even if it were, it seemed like the kind of thing you’d want records of anyway. Maybe there was another reason why they hadn’t committed the details to writing.

No point in trying to figure that out, though. Right now, I should think about what the Saint’s powers actually are.

Johan was right in that it had no name. The books referred to it as “the Saint’s magic,” but that didn’t sound like any of the other names for magic in this world.

What about the effects of the magic? The literature makes it sound like all Saints have the power to annihilate monsters. But do our powers have any other effects? I sure hope they do, because otherwise I’m never going to be able to imbue plants with my magic.

But the absence of any details meant there was a high probability its only use was monster killing. However, I was still high and dry on the count of how to use this power, which was what I really wanted to know—as once I figured it out, I could do some real experimenting. However, not a word had been left behind on this topic.

I kind of doubted anything would come of just chanting “Saint’s Magic” or something…

“I just want to know how it works,” I said.

“I wouldn’t know. That’s more a question for Grand Magus Drewes.”

“Hmm. I feel like all I do is ask him questions these days.”

I had asked him all kinds of things during my last class, and I was sure he’d be annoyed if I kept asking him things that had nothing to do with his lectures. Although, since this had to do with magic, he might very well gleefully help me try to solve this mystery.

I’ll try to puzzle this out for myself a bit longer before I bother him.

I told Johan I was going to go take a break and take a walk outside the institute. I had been cooped up inside all day, so I thought my head might be running in circles because of it. Getting some fresh air might help me work up new ideas.

 

I went outside with a lantern in hand. The wind stirred softly. Although it was still hot during the daytime, the breeze at night brought the temperature down quite a bit.

I sat on the bench just outside the institute and looked up at the sky, where I could see the moon and stars. This world didn’t have two moons or a different-colored moon like those in the books I had read long ago. If I had to name a real difference between this world’s sky and Japan’s, it would be that there were so many more stars in this one, though that was probably because there were relatively fewer lights on the ground.

The first time I saw this starry sky, I was verklempt. That had been about a month after my summoning. For that first month, I just hadn’t had it in me to take a minute and look up. I had been far too restless, what with having been suddenly summoned to another world. Not to mention, I was still reeling from being utterly ignored and abandoned by the crown prince. And then that official told me I couldn’t ever return to Japan. Just remembering it all made me feel a bit upset again.

After that initial kerfuffle, I decided to find a way to live a normal life in this world. Firstly, with the crown prince being who he was, I had no idea when he would kick me out of the palace. Plus, I didn’t want to stay there forever. In the end, I wound up employed at the Research Institute of Medicinal Flora and had stayed there ever since. It was shortly after I moved there that I felt at ease enough to idly look up at the sky from my bedroom window.

Several months had passed since then. Recently, I’d stopped thinking about Japan quite so much. At first, I was sad at the thought of never getting to see my parents, my brothers, or my friends ever again. Even now my heart hurt a bit to remember them.

And yet… Maybe I was an adaptable person? Or maybe I’d become so fixated on all of the unusual characteristics of another world… But it felt like that pain was gradually fading.

Am I heartless to feel this way after only a few months? I might have felt differently if I had experienced nothing but misfortunes since my arrival, but that wasn’t the case at all.

Excluding the prince, I had met so many kind people: Jude, Johan, and the other researchers, of course, and then others such as Knight Commander Albert and his Knights of the Third Order. Being surrounded by so many caring, welcoming people, I felt like I had found a place where I belonged.

Maybe that was why, despite running away from it for so long, I was finally coming to terms with my true role here as their Saint.

I mean, I couldn’t just sit here not doing anything while everyone I knew was in danger, especially not after witnessing it with my own eyes. That was why I was researching potion improvement. It made me happy to be able to help them.

Suddenly, I remembered the time I was summoned to Albert’s office so that he could thank me.

I guess it’s because I’m reminiscing about all the things that happened when I first got here?

I didn’t particularly expect or want him to thank me personally, but it was nice that he had done so, all the same. Remembering it made my heart tingle with warmth.

………

……

…

Huh? I gently pressed a hand to my heart. I called the feeling “warmth,” but that was just an expression—it wasn’t like my heart was actually warming up or anything. Yet, for some reason, it actually did feel warm right now. What the heck?

Even while I was worrying, my chest felt warmer and warmer until it reached the point where it felt like the heat would flow out of me.

What the heck is going on?! I was incredibly confused. And then I witnessed with my own eyes as something welled up from inside of me and suddenly, actually, began to overflow.

A mist spread out from me, just like when I cast an area-of-effect magic spell. It was white with gold sparkles, which made it likely that this was indeed my magic, but there were waaaay more sparkles than usual. In fact, I would say it was more a golden mist than the usual white.

What is this? The mist spread farther and farther. If I were casting a spell, it would’ve gone off by then. However, I didn’t think that was what would happen this time.

Suddenly, a nearby herb garden caught my eye. The mist had already reached it.

A thought popped into my mind: Perhaps, right now I can…

I wasn’t a Christian or anything, but for some reason I clasped my hands together as if in prayer. I had no idea why this pose seemed like the right thing to do, but it did. Then, I began to pray.

Please let this work.

The golden mist shone brightly, illuminating the whole lawn and garden despite the sun having already set. This lasted for but a moment before the light burst and golden sparkles began to rain down.

The wondrous sight made me sigh.

When I looked down, the herbs in the areas the mist had covered were now covered in golden sparkles. However, the twinkling disappeared right away.

“What happened?!” Johan must have noticed the light or something because he came bursting out of the institute. I couldn’t be too surprised.

“Uhhh,” I smiled awkwardly with a sheepish chuckle.

Johan furrowed his brow at me.

How in the world do I explain this? I don’t even know how I made it happen in the first place.

As I struggled to summon an answer, Johan’s gaze dropped to the herbs by my feet. He crouched down with a suspicious look on his face to examine them. He picked one for inspection and then searched the herbs growing near it, until he selected another where the mist hadn’t reached.

After comparing the two herbs in his hand, he looked up at me again. “What the heck?”

“I’m not really sure how to explain…” I trailed off.

Since it was dark, I didn’t see any difference between the two herbs, but Johan clearly did. I stammered through an explanation of everything that had happened since the moment I stepped outside. As I finished, he sighed.

“Well, let’s just get inside for now,” Johan said wearily and then turned to head back into the institute.

I’m so sorry I’m always acting the second an idea pops into my mind. I mentally apologized as I followed him inside.

 

“Did they change somehow?” I asked.

“Not on the outside, but…” Johan wasn’t entirely confident, so he hesitated a bit as he explained.

The two herbs on the table in the institute looked the same at a glance. But upon closer inspection, there was something different about them—on the inside.

On the inside? Does he mean the magic within them? I wasn’t sure, but I would certainly ask him for the details later. Right now, I was more concerned about the outcome of the supposed changes.

“Try making potions with these,” Johan suggested.

At his permission, I gathered my ingredients and cautiously set about making two separate potions. As I went, I too felt the difference at the stage where I had to imbue the brews with magic. It was only a…hm, a feeling, but there was definitely something different.

In fact, when the potions were finished, the difference between the two was obvious at a glance.

“It’s so pretty,” I breathed.

“It is…”

I could really see the difference as I held the bottled potion above my head toward the lamplight. It had golden sparkles floating in it, which reflected the light. This had never happened in any of the potions I made before.

“I wonder what its properties are.”

“We’ll have to test it to find out, but I’m guessing it’ll be better than any we’ve made before.” Johan wore a tired smile on his face.

Please don’t look at me like that. I can’t help it, okay?

 

The next day, we analyzed the potion and found that it was indeed better than anything I’d ever made before. It was plainly fifty percent more effective than fifty percent—just over twice as effective in all. To think my curse would affect this, too…

Upon further investigation, other people were also able to make potions one and a half times more effective by using the herbs that had been enhanced by my mysterious magic. We also discerned that the effects of the enhanced herbs lasted only for that generation—we couldn’t use them to grow enhanced species of the same plants.

It seemed the only way to make enhanced herbs was with my magic. It was nice and all that everyone could make better potions with these herbs, but it was a bit unfortunate that they wouldn’t be able to get the ingredients without me.

There was also the problem that I had no idea how to cast that mysterious spell again. I tried it over and over, to no avail. I didn’t know what had sparked it in the first place, so I really had no idea where to start, despite remembering what I did when it happened and trying that over and over again. I guess I just need to figure it out step by step.

I was sure the grand magus would joyfully accept an invitation to help me out with my research, though, so I didn’t think it would be too long before I was able to cast it again.